Preliminary Evaluation of the Morphophysiological Performance of Three Indonesian Garlic Varieties under Urban Lowland Conditions

¹ University of Sriwijaya, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Agroecotechnology, Jl. Raya Palembang-Prabumulih Km 32 Indralaya, Ogan Ilir 30662, Indonesia
² University of Sriwijaya, Faculty of Agriculture, Department of Agronomy, Jl. Raya Palembang-Prabumulih Km 32 Indralaya, Ogan Ilir 30662, Indonesia

^* Corresponding author: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Abstract

Urban agriculture has emerged as a pragmatic and effective solution to address land scarcity while supporting sustainable food production in modern cities. The rapid process of urbanization has created an urgent need for the development of efficient urban agriculture solutions to ensure food security. This study aims to address these challenges by evaluating the growth of garlic (Allium sativum L.) with the incorporation of yard-long beans (Vigna unguiculata) as a living shade crop to facilitate adaptive environmental conditions. The experiment was conducted at the Greenhouse of the Department of Crop Science, Sriwijaya University, from July to November 2025, employing a completely randomized design (CRD). The treatments consisted of local Indonesian garlic varieties—Lumbu Sembalun (LS), Lumbu Kuning (LK), and Lumbu Hijau (LH)—grown under the living shade of yard-long bean foliage. The results demonstrated that the LH and LK garlic varieties exhibited superior growth characteristics in comparison to LS, as evidenced by higher germination percentages and more vigorous early vegetative growth. Conversely, LS exhibited suboptimal growth patterns but displayed earlier bulb initiation. Four weeks after planting (WAP), the results demonstrated that the LH treatment exhibited significantly superior shoot length (54.70 cm), number of leaves (8.25 leaves), and relative chlorophyll content (53.83 SPAD) compared to the LK and LS treatments. These findings were accompanied by a significantly larger bulb diameter and higher total fresh biomass in the LH treatment. Furthermore, the formation of aerial bulbs was observed in all 4-month-old hardneck garlic genotypes, suggesting a robust reproductive adaptation to lowland environmental conditions. The intercropping of yard-long beans also yielded dual-crop benefits; in addition to being harvestable, they promoted optimal garlic growth. However, further analysis is necessary to elucidate the relationship between the two as part of an intercropping system.